Who Gets into Heaven?

If you love me, you will keep my commandments.  John 14:15

What does it take to be a follower of Christ?  What does it mean to love Him?  Is it enough to be a good person?  To attend church on a somewhat regular basis?  To tell people you are a Christian?  If you have made a profession of your faith at some point in your life, can you then live as you please and expect to be forgiven?

I see many claims in the media, made by people themselves or others on their behalf, that a certain public figure…politician, celebrity, sports standout…is a Christian.  Do we then have a right to certain expectations?  It is not unusual after hearing such a claim to find out that the person is not really living in keeping with Christ’s commandments.

I understand that we are not to judge lest we also be judged, but I also understand that we are to recognize those who are Christ followers by “their fruits.”

One of the things that discourages me in this regard is learning that a “Christian” is living openly with their boyfriend or girlfriend as though this is totally acceptable.  I will grant you that it is acceptable to our society, but the Bible is pretty clear in its condemnation of this type of behavior.  Sexual sin is pervasive in our culture to the point where it is the norm.  However, it is a cancer that can destroy a person from within.  It is not something that harms only the person who is engaging in such conduct.  It harms those they love and who love them.

Too often sexual sin is shrugged off, because the person has “a good heart.”  They exhibit compassion toward the less fortunate.  They are philanthropic.  They give money to food banks or build houses or promote legislation meant to help the poor.  I’m sorry, but we don’t get to heaven on our “good works.”  We only get there through our understanding that we are sinners in need of a Savior.  If we truly understand that, we will love Him and want to keep His commandments.  In Matthew 15:19, Christ himself mentions sexual sins (adultery, fornication) as defiling a person.  I cannot reconcile openly flaunting Christ’s directive with being a Christian.  If we are caught up in such a sin, there is, of course, forgiveness available to us, but we need to repent…which means forsaking the sin.  In other words, stop what you are doing!

King David was a prime example of someone who seemed to love God whole-heartedly, but who fell into sexual sin.  He not only took another man’s wife, but then when he didn’t manage to pass off her pregnancy as a result of the marriage, he arranged for the man to be killed.  However, unlike the situations I’m thinking of today, David was totally repentant when confronted.  He did not shrug off his sin as part of the cultural norm.

I have seen the argument that some who claim to be Christians and legalistically adhere to rules of conduct are much less Christian in their actions than others whose morals are a bit loose.  Here’s the problem….this is not an either/or situation.  It is a both/and.  We cannot earn our way into a relationship with God.  We must acknowledge our sin and accept Christ’s sacrifice, BUT once we have done that our lives should demonstrate that we are in a relationship with God Himself.  All those “good works” should be evident in our lives in addition to the gospel we proclaim.

I am grateful that I do not have to make any decisions as to who will enter heaven and who will not.  But the divine judge has stated:  “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. ²² Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ ²³ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’  Matthew 7:21-23

So, who gets into heaven?

*the star football player who is philanthropic but lives with a girlfriend

*the politician who claims to be compassionate, but supports abortion

*the well-know evangelist who turns out to have been a sexual predator

*the celebrity who has lived promiscuously, but says her bedtime prayers

*the pastor who sneaks a peek at porn whenever he gets a chance

*all of the above

*none of the above

Someone a whole lot wiser than I am will decide.

Who forms the human spirit?

 The Lord, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the human spirit within a person….  Zechariah 12:1

What an interesting introduction to the rest of the chapter.  What an interesting sentence which seems to equate the importance of forming the human spirit within a person with things as monumental as laying the foundation of the earth and stretching out the heavens.

If this is true, and I believe it is, then we must value the spirit within every person.  God has created each of us uniquely for his purpose.  He has instilled in each of us the qualities He intends to use for His purpose and His glory.  We cannot belittle any human being.  We must value those who are innately meek and gentle and those who are fiercely full of energy.  He has a place for both in His kingdom.  Those with high energy must not look down on those who are quiet.  Those who are slow to both speak and act must not judge those who are quick-witted and willing to charge ahead. 

Whatever the human spirit within us, it is best expressed when yielded to the creator who formed it.  I have thought about this recently in relation to the different personalities of my grandchildren.  Among them are the gentle and also those full of fire.  They do not all have to be alike in order to be of great value.

Nor do I have to be like every other believer.  I fully understand that personality characteristics can be “flaws.”  We should not be excusing the worst of ourselves.  But, even what is viewed as the worst may indicate something God has built into us which can be sanctified for His use.  What comes across as being a “spitfire” may if consecrated to God be zeal for Him and His kingdom.  What comes across as reticence may be a willingness to stand back and pray for those who act.

What an amazing thought.  The one who has the power and wisdom to create the universe also fashions the spirit within us as individuals.  I stand in awe of an all powerful and yet personal God.

How arrogant and misguided is the view of the humanist who thinks the “human spirit” somehow came from somewhere.

Light Will Come

 Long before its appearance,

There are hints of the coming glory.

Streaks of color creep around

The fringes of the earth’s orb.

 

The horizon at the ocean’s edge

Turns orange and pink and purple.

The palette of colors blending uniquely

With the dawn of each new day.

 

Then a pinpoint of vivid color

Overpowers the pastels.

I am amazed by how quickly

It silently rises and grows.

 

Sunrise in all its glory.

Too bright for human eyes.

A radiance too powerful,

A searing, piercing light.

 

There are hints of the coming glory,

The dawn of a new day is approaching,

And we will all be amazed by

A radiance too powerful for human eye.

 

A searing, piercing Light will come.

Uncared for...

I am increasingly troubled by bad things that happen to children.  When I hear news on television or see an internet article about a child being mistreated, it feels like a wave of nausea or a stab in my abdomen.  Recently I read of an eleven year-old boy chained in a barrel, because he was too much trouble for his father and stepmother.  It sounds as though he is either mentally ill or intellectually disabled, but that is not an excuse.  There is no telling from the article if his level of functioning is a cause of his abuse or an effect of prolonged abuse or a vicious circle.

I saw this type of treatment firsthand once.  I spent six weeks of nursing school at Cook County TB Sanitarium.  I don’t remember why the young patient I am going to describe was there.  I don’t remember whether she had a positive TB test or perhaps a fever of unknown origin.  In any event she was about 12 years old and had never been cared for in an appropriate manner. We were told she had been kept locked up with food just shoved in the door to her.  She was more like an animal than a human.  She did not speak.  Her hair had not been cared for in years and was long and terribly tangled and matted together.  She did not know how to use eating utensils.  She was in a private room in isolation, and one evening I was assigned to care for her.

I have no clear recollection of what I did for her that evening about 55 years ago.  I don’t remember if I fed her or tried to comb her hair or changed her clothes.  All I remember is that I had my back turned to her when I was suddenly in pain.  She came up behind me and bit me on the shoulder….hard.  I was wearing an isolation gown, which would have been 2 layers of heavy fabric, over my student uniform which was heavy tightly woven cotton with a pinafore over it.  She bit through at least 4 layers of heavy fabric, and when I undressed that night, I saw the imprint of her teeth in distinct blue marks on my shoulder.  Minus all that fabric, I’m sure she would have broken the skin.

I don’t know what became of her.  I suppose she was institutionalized after her medical situation was diagnosed and treated.  I don’t know if it ever was safe for one to turn his/her back to her.  I hadn’t been warned, and I have no idea what triggered her aggression.  I do know it saddened me to see a child that age so deprived of love and human contact.

The boy in the barrel and this girl are only two examples.  I am sure there are many around the world, and it hurts me to think of it.  Every child should be loved and tenderly cared for.

I used to hear this song on the radio in the late 60s, and I couldn’t listen to it without tears.  I know Christmas is past, but this song comes to my mind as I think of all the children in the world who are in need or in desperate situations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4R06T14Qac

Angel of Light

Angel of light most beautiful,

Gloriously radiant,

But only by reflection,

Of the divine.

 

Mistaken in your belief,

The glory was your own.

Your aspiration,

The highest throne.

 

Fallen to earth,

Beauty retained,

But only as a façade

A diabolical deceit.

 

You roam the earthly sphere,

Whispering in our ears,

Sly and attractive

On the surface.

 

Judging by outward appearance,

We think we are safe.

Until the trap is sprung.

We see too late.

 

Spirit of the living God,

Whisper in my ear,

Give me discernment

To know Truth.

The Power of Words

During the non-stop coverage of the protests/riots at the capitol, I heard Norah O’Donnell talk quite piously about the “power of words.”  She was referencing the ways in which Trump’s comments have been incendiary and caused the uprising.  I find this ironic given the ways in which the media in general, and Norah herself, have contributed to the divisiveness of the past year.

Is Trump guilty of using words…lots of words in person and by tweets… to throw gas on fires?  Yes, he certainly is.  He has been very unwise in both quantity and quality of words.  He has said much that is irrational, and it has resonated with lunatic fringe who are eager to translate words into actions.

However…

The media shares in the guilt.  Trump has been so hated from the beginning that absolutely everything he has done has been dissected and criticized in a way I have not previously seen.  Please don’t try to tell me the same thing happened to Obama or Bush or that it will happen to Biden.  Many of Trump appointees were raked over the coals unmercifully without a chance to prove they could do the job.  In contrast, some of Biden’s appointments, although there are valid concerns, have barely been mentioned in the media.  Biden is on camera bragging about a quid pro quo, but Trump was impeached for suspicion of the same.

The worst is always assumed of Trump.  If the media doesn’t know what he is doing, they assume he is off golfing…i.e. loafing.  Recently when that was the accusation, he was in fact off visiting the troops in Afghanistan.  A president cannot publicize everything he does.

The media long ago stopped reporting the news and began editorializing.  Trump did not just “ say” something.  He “lied” about something.  Do they think we are incapable of making any judgments for ourselves?

This has become a vicious cycle of unwise comments from Trump, over reaction from the media, Trump lashing out, the media responding, Trump getting angrier and the media getting more hostile.  The situation has escalated because both sides have been unwise.  Trump has frequently behaved like a toddler throwing a tantrum.  The best approach to that situation is to ignore the toddler and go about one’s business.  Do not reward bad behavior with attention.  Award good behavior.  Is there nothing positive Trump has done that the media could have emphasized?  Actually, there is quite a bit.

There is currently an ad for CBS now running in which Norah’s voice is heard saying that the most important question is “why?”  She and the rest of the media ought to be doing some soul-searching regarding “why” we are in the current morass of hatred and confusion. 

Yes, Norah…words have power…and that includes your words.

We are facing destruction

I have never been very interested in politics…but the nature of man does interest me.  Here are some thoughts.

A dictatorship or monarchy would work well as a system of government, if the despot had a strong moral compass and was inclined to be compassionate.

Democracy works well when the people have a strong moral compass and are inclined to be compassionate.

Capitalism works well when the members of the society behave morally and are inclined to be benevolent and even philanthropic, if they acquire more than their fellowmen.

Socialism works well when the members of the society have a strong work ethic and are tolerant of not acquiring more than their fellowmen.

Here’s the pattern…no form of government or economic system is sustainable outside of a strong set of moral values, a robust work ethic, and an inclination to care about those around us.

And…that is why the United States is in trouble.

History revisionists have attempted to remove the Christian context in which our country was formed, but it was fact.  Our government has only lasted as long as it has because of its moral underpinnings.  That has changed in my lilfetime.  When I was young, even people who were not overtly Christian understood the value of Christian principles and of having moral absolutes.  This is no longer the case.  We are not only pluralistic, but also relativistic.  Almost anything can be rationalized as tolerance.  It has become more important to be “tolerant” than it is to be “moral.”

We are on the slippery slope to destruction.  It is not Trump’s fault, and it will not be Biden’s fault.  It is our fault as a society.

II Timothy 3:1-5 (Phillips translation)

But you must realize that in the last days the times will be full of danger.  Men will become utterly self-centered, greedy for money, full of big words.  They will be proud and contemptuous, without any regard for what their parents taught them.  They will be utterly lacking in gratitude, purity and normal human affections.  They will be men of unscrupulous speech and have no control of themselves.  They will be passionate and unprincipled, treacherous, self-willed and conceited, loving all the time what gives them pleasure instead of loving God.  They will maintain a façade of “religion,” but their conduct will deny its validity.

The nature of man is not basically good and moral.  We are desperately wicked and in need of a Savior.

And…there is a Savior!

I John 1:9 (KJV)  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Romans 10:9 (NIV) If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Without repentance, we are facing destruction both individually and as a nation.